Year: 2018

U.S. President Donald Trump is naming Larry Kudlow, a longtime conservative economic analyst and television business show commentator, as his new top White House economic adviser. The 70-year-old Kudlow told news media he accepted Trump's offer Wednesday to become director of the White House's National Economic Council. Reports say a formal announcement could come Thursday. He will replace former Wall Street financier Gary Cohn, who resigned last week after breaking with President Trump on trade policy. Cohn had lost an internal debate, among Trump advisers, aimed at convincing the president not to impose steep new tariffs on steel and aluminum imports.   Kudlow, who was an informal economic adviser to Trump during the first year of his presidency, also opposed Trump's imposition of the 25 percent levy on steel and…

Behind the U.S. move to block Singapore-based Broadcom's hostile bid for U.S. chipmaker Qualcomm lies a new global struggle for influence over next-generation communications technology — and fears that whoever takes the lead could exploit that advantage for economic gain, theft and espionage. In the Broadcom-Qualcomm deal, the focus is on so-called "5G" wireless technology, which promises data speeds that rival those of landline broadband now. Its proponents insist that 5G, the next step up from the "4G" networks that now serve most smartphones, will become a critical part of the infrastructure powering everything from self-driving cars to the connected home. 5G remains in the early stages of development. Companies including Qualcomm, based in San Diego, and China's Huawei have been investing heavily to stake their claim in the underlying…

Sao Paulo investment firm SouthRock Capital has signed an agreement with Starbucks that gives it the right to develop and operate branches of the Seattle-based chain in Brazil, the companies said late on Monday. With the agreement, whose value was not disclosed, all of Starbucks' retail operations in Latin America are now wholly licensed rather than directly managed, the companies said. SouthRock founder Ken Pope said in a statement the fund would eye expansion opportunities in new and existing markets. Starbucks now has 113 stores across the populous states of Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. "With Starbucks, we see continued opportunities for growth in existing markets ... as well as new markets like Brasilia and the South," he said. SouthRock, founded in 2015, also owns Brazil Airport Restaurants, which…

"Dona Edir, Dona Edir" — the call is heard frequently in the narrow lanes of Canaa, a slum on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro. It is for Edir Dariux Teixeira, who is well known among the residents, having spent more than a third of her life trying to improve infrastructure and basic services in the ramshackle settlement. At the heart of that fight are legal property titles to the residents' homes — or, more accurately, the lack of them. "Without these documents we have no rights," she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation, sitting close to a fan to alleviate the near-40C (104°F) heat funneling from her asbestos roof. Debates on how to manage property rights in the world's informal settlements are becoming ever more pressing, as millions of people…

The daily commute from Mexico to California farms is the same as it was before Donald Trump became president. Hundreds of Mexicans cross the border and line the sidewalks of Calexico's tiny downtown by 4 a.m., napping on cardboard sheets and blankets or sipping coffee from a 24-hour doughnut shop until buses leave for the fields. For decades, cross-border commuters have picked lettuce, carrots, broccoli, onions, cauliflower and other vegetables that make California's Imperial Valley "America's Salad Bowl'' from December through March. As Trump visits the border Tuesday, the harvest is a reminder of how little has changed despite heated immigration rhetoric in Washington. Trump will inspect eight prototypes for a future 30-foot border wall that were built in San Diego last fall. He made a "big, beautiful wall'' a…

Chile's new government is preparing belt-tightening measures after inheriting a larger-than-anticipated fiscal deficit from its predecessor, but the measures will stop short of "mega-adjustments," Finance Minister Felipe Larrain said on Monday. Conservative billionaire Sebastian Pinera took office on Sunday vowing to combat economic "stagnation" and calling for a return to "fiscal equilibrium" as he seeks to transform Chile into a developed nation within a decade. "We're in a period of tight budgets, with levels of public debt that have doubled, which means we must begin with austerity measures, followed by a reassigning resources, in order to finance the president's program," Larrain told reporters as he entered the finance ministry for his first day on the job. Shortly before leaving office, outgoing President Michelle Bachelet's government reported it had left a…

U.S. President Donald Trump is blocking Singapore-based Broadcom, maker of computer and smartphone chips, from taking over U.S. chipmaker Qualcomm. Trump cited national security grounds in stopping the takeover, following the recommendation of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). The committee reviews national security implications when foreign entities purchase U.S. corporations. The president's order said there is "credible evidence" that the takeover "might take action that threatens to impair the national security of the United States." Broadcom made an unsolicited bid last year to take over Qualcomm for $117 billion. The company has been in the process of moving its legal headquarters from Singapore to the United States to help it win approval for the takeover. Qualcomm, which is based in San Diego, has emerged as…

Labor strikes. Nationwide protests. Bank failures. In recent months, Iran has been beset by economic problems despite the promises surrounding the 2015 nuclear deal it struck with world powers. Its clerically overseen government is starting to take notice. Politicians now offer the idea of possible government referendums or early elections. Even Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei acknowledged the depths of the problems ahead of the 40th anniversary of Iran’s Islamic Revolution. “Progress has been made in various sectors in the real sense of the word; however, we admit that in the area of ‘justice’ we are lagging behind,” Khamenei said in February, according to an official transcript. “We should apologize to Allah the Exalted and to our dear people.” Whether change can come, however, is in question. ​An economy run…

China said Sunday it does not intend to ignite a trade war with the U.S. because the move would be disastrous for the entire world. “There are no winners in a trade war,” Minister of Commerce Zhong Shan said on the sidelines of China’s annual parliamentary session. “China does not wish to fight a trade war, nor will China initiate a trade war, but we can handle any challenge and will resolutely defend the interests of our country and our people,” Zhong said. President Donald Trump signed proclamations Thursday imposing a 25 percent tariff on imported steel and a 10 percent tariff on imported aluminum, with the new taxes set to go into effect this month. ​US, Japan, EU talk Trade representatives for Japan and the European Union met with…

Trade representatives for Japan and the European Union met with the U.S. trade representative Saturday in an effort to avoid a trade war over President Donald Trump's new tariffs on aluminum and steel. At the meeting in Brussels, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom and Japanese counterpart Hiroshige Seko discussed the tariffs as part of a trilateral effort to combat unfair trade practices. The EU said in a statement that both Brussels and Tokyo had serious concerns about the U.S. tariffs. Both powers, two of the biggest trade partners with the United States, have asked for exemptions from the tariffs. After the meeting, Malmstrom tweeted, "No immediate clarity on the exact U.S. procedure for exemption ... so discussions will continue next week." Seko said at a news…

Several Asian nations that are major trading partners with the U.S. reacted strongly Friday to a U.S. decision to impose tariffs on metal imports, raising concerns of global trade conflicts. China, a key target of U.S. trade concerns, said it was "resolutely opposed" to the U.S. tariff decision, with Japan warning of the impact on bilateral ties. South Korea said it may file a complaint to the international trade dispute body, the World Trade Organization (WTO). South Korea is the third-largest steel exporter to the U.S. after Canada and Brazil. Several Southeast Asian nations say they fear a wave of import dumping of steel and aluminum products. U.S. President Donald Trump, turning aside warnings from economists and members within the Republican Party, signed an order Thursday for new tariffs of…

China is gearing up to retaliate in response to stiff U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum as Chinese industry associations urge authorities to take "resolute measures." Retaliation from Beijing could contribute to a possible trade war between the world's two biggest economies, analysts said. China's Ministry of Commerce has pledged to "firmly defend its legitimate rights and interests" and called for an end to the measures as quickly as possible. In a statement posted on the website of the China Iron and Steel Association, the group appealed to the government in Beijing "to take resolute measures against imports of some U.S. products, including stainless steel, galvanized sheet, seamless pipe, coal, agriculture products and electronic products." While the possibility of retaliating over steel and hitting agricultural imports and other sectors has…

Young people around the United States are creating virtual businesses that produce simulated products, which are marketed and sold for virtual money. Thirteen hundred students recently showcased their ventures, ranging from telecom firms to gourmet food providers, in Pasadena, California. At what looked like a corporate trade show, students from Miguel Contreras Business and Tourism School in Los Angeles solicited customers for their tour company. Teacher Darrell Iki helped the students launch Big City Tours, which exists only in the classroom and online. The company stages virtual tours to different parts of Los Angeles, highlighting the city's ethnic heritage, fashion or high-end shopping. A related virtual company sells travel gear. Students from Century High School in Santa Ana, California, sell a hypothetical translation device geared toward travelers.  It all starts…